Poster campaign supports farmers in India
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/12/2020 (1948 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
The local Punjabi community is coming together online in a show of support for farmers in India.
Carrying hashtags like #FarmerProtest, #TakeBackFarmLaws and #StandWithFarmers, they’ve taken to social media to post pictures of themselves holding up posters of support.
“We just want to support the protest as much as possible,” Punjabi Cultural Association of Brandon vice-president Baljeet Singh said.
At issue are three contentious agriculture bills Indian President Ram Nath Kovind gave assent to on Sept. 27, which opponents say will deregulate crop pricing and result in corporations pushing down prices.
Approximately 60 per cent of the Indian population depends on agriculture for their livelihoods.
According to The Canadian Press, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has defended the reforms as benefiting farmers by allowing them to market their products and boost production through private investment, although government consultation with farmers has been called into question.
While public protests have been springing up around the globe, including a procession of vehicles on the Perimeter Highway in Winnipeg on Sunday, the local group has opted for an online-only protest for the time being.
Given the current level red status in the province’s Pandemic Response System, Singh said the local group decided an online-only campaign would be best.
“All we’re doing is weighing in and doing our part,” Singh said. “We’re just supporting them — that (the bills are) against their democratic rights, and Canada is a democratic country so we’re just participating along with them as their Canadian counterparts.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently expressed support for peaceful protests, stating, “Canada will always stand up for the right of peaceful protests anywhere around the world, and we are pleased to see moves toward de-escalation and dialogue.”
The local poster campaign started a few days ago and has already amassed dozens of participants.
The end goal, Singh said, is for the Indian government to engage in dialogue with farmers and to resolve the issue peacefully.
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of people continue to gather in Delhi, India, to protest the government’s actions.
“Given the pandemic situation, we are all concerned for their health, so we’re all weighing in so that the situation can be resolved as soon as possible,” Singh said.
“The traditional system works well for the producers, so the producers are thinking these new bills and reforms will be engaging in direct dealing with the corporate companies who will exploit them in the future. … It’s about their existence; it’s about their rights.”
More information on the poster campaign can be found on the Punjabi Cultural Association of Brandon’s namesake Facebook page.
» tclarke@brandonsun.com,
with files from The Canadian Press
» Twitter @TylerClarkeMB